Transition Year - Waste of time, space and money?

Catari Jaguar

If the school provides a decent program with a variety of subjects it can be very beneficial.

In our (all girls) school, where the emphasis was on academic subjects, it was good to explore modules such as Interior Design, tech, dance, drama, self defence, other languages, running a small business, art etc.

The work experience is great and we also did an apptitude test and received career guidance. There were plenty of opportunities for boosting self esteem, socialising, team building, talk and discussion about your life in general etc.

It helps if you're not mature enough for the Leaving Cert stress or to knuckle down to study yet too.

Catari Jaguar

jester77 wrote: »

It's worth skipping it and going straight into 4th year and heading to college earlier

Why go to college at only 17?!

jester77

cherub rock wrote: »

Why go to college at only 17?!

So you are finished at 21

Why go at 18

Swampy

Was brilliant. Went to Germany for 3 months on an exchange. Great craic.

7Sins

cherub rock wrote: »

Why go to college at only 17?!

Because no one should be an adult and still in school Of course there's an exception and that's people who want or need 550+ pts in the LC then being a year older would help other than that for the rest of us average joe soaps there's no reason to be fannying around in school like a kid at 18

karaokeman

Its a complete doss and most students can't remember how to study when they come into 5th year, of course its a waste:p

MangoLime

I did Transition Year-biggest waste of a year in my opinion.

Before my Junior Cert I was sooo focused, did really well in every subject, never got anything below a B.

I did Transition Year and it was like somebody flicked a switch inside my head and my concentration shut down. Free classes every five minutes, airy fairy activities...........

5th and 6th year I was a different person entirely. I just couldn't concentrate. I was so used to not having to do anything. Therefore my marks suffered badly.

Pointless year......

Catari Jaguar

7Sins wrote: »

Because no one should be an adult and still in school

But no one should be a child in college. You can't even drink legally...

Personally speaking, I turned 19 the week after my LC ended and still feel I was immature for my particular college course. But 6th year, social life wise, was the biggest laugh ever, out getting wrecked every weekend, helped with the exam stress and all that. Still lived at home too, no responsibilities.

Mike 1972

There was no transition year in my school however we had something called "7th class" in primary school. Biggest waste of time ever.

cherub rock wrote: »

But no one should be a child in college. You can't even drink legally...

:rolleyes:

miss no stars

My school forced us all to do it, which I think is as bad as not having the option at all.


I did all the projects, went on all the trips, got involved and had a blast.

In retrospect, it was the worst thing that happened to me. The projects were piss easy and I outgrew learning by rote at the end of 5th year, making 6th year very frustrating. Doesn't matter that the problem there lies with the LC requiring people to learn by rote and rewards regurgitation, all years of school should at the very least compliment the other years and not completely contradict them. It's like 3 years of "learn this off, learn this off, learn this off" followed by 1 year of "project! project!" followed by "learn more stuff off!!!" it just doesn't gel. Tbh there really is nothing wrong with a very well run TY (which mine was) it's just that it's completely at odds with the system it's plonked in the middle of and I found that the benefits were cancelled out (and then some) by the disbenefits of it.

It's good for some people but not for all. If anything, TY should be optional, and fee paying for those who don't have medical cards/wouldn't qualify for 3rd level local authority grants.

kingtut

Transition year for me was a very tough, challenging but rewarding and eye opening experience.

I really don't see how anyone could think of it as a waste of time or space

El Siglo

I never did transition year and I'm glad I didn't, I hated school and most of the people in it. I am proud of the fact that having not done TY it meant that I was 20 when I got my degree.

Lord TSC

MangoLime wrote: »

I did Transition Year-biggest waste of a year in my opinion.

Before my Junior Cert I was sooo focused, did really well in every subject, never got anything below a B.

I did Transition Year and it was like somebody flicked a switch inside my head and my concentration shut down. Free classes every five minutes, airy fairy activities...........

5th and 6th year I was a different person entirely. I just couldn't concentrate. I was so used to not having to do anything. Therefore my marks suffered badly.

Pointless year......

See, I know people who did the TY program with me who argued the exact same things. But again, I think that goes down to how much effort you put into the year, since I, doing the same course, found my grades increased following TY.

It strikes me that a good TY program should offer plenty to keep the stduent focused and working, but it's the mindset of the student going in that determines how they come out of it. If you treat it as a doss year, of course you're going to come out the other side with problems...

Princess Peach

Transition year was mandatory in my school and my school had some of the highest leaving cert results in the city. I think its good in the way we spent an extra year doing maths, Irish, English and French in preparation for the leaving cert. And we got to test out a lot of the leaving cert subjects so we would know for sure if we wanted to do them. And it was a lot of fun!

Few people in my college year then who had skipped transition year and they were very young starting college. One girl had barely turned 17, and she was clearly not of the maturity level needed. I think school should be 6 years long. 17 is very young for some people to be thrown out into the real world!

gazmc18

I did Transition Year-biggest waste of a year in my opinion.

Before my Junior Cert I was sooo focused, did really well in every subject, never got anything below a B.

I did Transition Year and it was like somebody flicked a switch inside my head and my concentration shut down. Free classes every five minutes, airy fairy activities...........

5th and 6th year I was a different person entirely. I just couldn't concentrate. I was so used to not having to do anything. Therefore my marks suffered badly.

Pointless year......

THats funny I was the complete opposite. I had no interest up to junior cert, literally i was useless. I did ty and i think it gave me extra time i needed to cop on and grow up a bit. Did well in 5th and 6th and got a decent leaving then went to college and got degree. Before 3rd year my parents used to always say id never go to college as i just didnt like school. A bit of the way into 5th year it all just kind of clicked.
I dont think TY helped me mature but i think it gave me an extra year to cop on a bit.
I was in TY the year of the foot and mouth so we literally did nothing!
I would say if your doing well in school dont bother with TY but otherwise its possibly worth a shot.

I didn't do it. Seems a waste. All these courses and stuff - why not do them at the weekends or in the evenings if they're that valuable.

Transition year was mandatory in my school and my school had some of the highest leaving cert results in the city. I think its good in the way we spent an extra year doing maths, Irish, English and French in preparation for the leaving cert. And we got to test out a lot of the leaving cert subjects so we would know for sure if we wanted to do them. And it was a lot of fun!

A lot of the leaving could be done in a year, 3 seems excessive

Few people in my college year then who had skipped transition year and they were very young starting college. One girl had barely turned 17, and she was clearly not of the maturity level needed. I think school should be 6 years long. 17 is very young for some people to be thrown out into the real world!

As usual, I will have to point out that it completely depends on the person.
And if the person is too young for college let them take a year off after the LC and do work or something, not be forced into an extra school year of doing courses and free classes.

wild_cat

7Sins wrote: »

Transition Year students....oh jesus christ, bunch of irritating swatty mammy's boys and frigid girls. I can't phatom the logic of someone who wants to spend an extra year in school

I did it as we just wanted to piss away a year. Quite literally at that.... Everyday was spent planning what we wanted to do at the weekend as we had no major homework or study to be doing. In my and my friends case it was more drinking practice for the first year of college than anything else. Plus we just got to arse about the school most of the time.

We made make up in science class, form and fusion for art... Work experience... (which I hated.. I went to a pottery and they ended up paying me 300 quid.. they weren't meant to pay us anything it was for 8 days work to...) Apparently this proved I was in fact quite employable for my age, it gave me a right confidence boost. We spent time going to museums, also went to the zoo to study animals for Science. Learned how to crochet, set up our own company etc. Learned some Japanese.

I got to hijack classes talking about politics. A business teacher had never seen a 16 year old read a book about globalisation before....

But I do know the type you are describing. We hated them.

I did **** in the leaving cert though. My parents were told that I was highly intelligent but was far more interested in self education than what they were trying to teach me. If I had of opened a book I would have achieved great things.... Transition year broke the flow in my dedicated to studying what they were trying to teach me. It gave me a bigger chance to learn or read about what I wanted to know. I never got back into swing of the set curriculum as I was too involved in my own self education by that time to give a feck.


You had to pay a fee to do it in my school. With top up payments for other trips through out the year.

listermint

People leave school too young, I was in college with people who were 17 or just 17 ffs... TY is required. Some of these kids thought they were wide to the big bad world but tbh they needed an extra year to catch up a bit.


So yes I think it is a good idea.

Princess Peach

Probably depends on the school too though. We didn't really have any free classes. We had a new project to do very week. You were kept working at school stuff and we had to do work experience and volunteer work and sports too. Pretty great for bulking up the CV. Few girls transferred to our school cause theirs didn't have a good TY program. There was an option in our school to skip it but you went straight into the LCA class, couple took this up.

I thought it was great in my school anyway!

listermint

listermint wrote: »

People leave school too young, I was in college with people who were 17 or just 17 ffs... TY is required. Some of these kids thought they were wide to the big bad world but tbh they needed an extra year to catch up a bit.


So yes I think it is a good idea.

Making children waste a year of their life instead of going out and getting a job after school for a year out first is a really silly reason to keep TY.

Princess Peach

bluewolf wrote: »

Making children waste a year of their life instead of going out and getting a job after school for a year out first is a really silly reason to keep TY.

Probably more than half the people I know who had that plan though never did go to college in the end. Got used to having the money in a low paying job and too relaxed on the year out.

Princess Peach

Princess Peach wrote: »

Probably more than half the people I know who had that plan though never did go to college in the end. Got used to having the money in a low paying job and too relaxed on the year out.

If they liked working better than college then it shows they were better off taking the year out and not going straight into it anyway.
Not everyone wants to or should go to college. Which makes having an extra year of school learning nothing so they won't be "too young going to college" even more pointless.

siobhanosaur

I didn't do TY and I'm very happy I didn't. My friends all seemed to be dossing about for the year and I managed to stay in the head space of studying and got a great leaving cert at the end of it. I also made loads of new friends and went straight into college afterwards at 18 so I wasn't too young. I don't think TY is for everyone and I knew it wasn't for me despite my teachers trying to convince me to do it.

7Sins

cherub rock wrote: »

But no one should be a child in college. You can't even drink legally...

Personally speaking, I turned 19 the week after my LC ended and still feel I was immature for my particular college course. But 6th year, social life wise, was the biggest laugh ever, out getting wrecked every weekend, helped with the exam stress and all that. Still lived at home too, no responsibilities.

College isn't about drinking so you're argument is void ;););)

partyatmygaff

listermint wrote: »

People leave school too young, I was in college with people who were 17 or just 17 ffs... TY is required. Some of these kids thought they were wide to the big bad world but tbh they needed an extra year to catch up a bit.


So yes I think it is a good idea.

College is hardly the "big bad world"...

languagenerd

There's no option for "Yes and I found it somewhat worthwhile"...

In some respects it was pointless - I had to do subjects that I had never any intention of doing for the LC and we wasted time on pointless projects, including Photography where we spent a term taking pics of a rubber duck etc. Sometimes I was bored as hell and there seemed to be little point going in - we had one Irish module where we just learned Sean Nos songs and the teacher would go mental cause nobody would sing along!

On the other hand, I got to try my hand at things I'd never done before (legal studies, cooking, beginner languages, art), had a sample of some LC subjects that helped make my choice (all three sciences, all three business subjects etc.), learned how to write speeches and speak in public, got a qualification in Microsoft Office, did valuable work experience that went on my first CV, achieved the Bronze Gaisce award, went on several trips and made new friends who are still amongst my best friends today (nearly 5 years later).

I think it depends on the school, though, and you get out what you put into it. It does need to be restructured - get rid of the most pointless aspects and start working on the LC courses in English, Irish and Maths at least. There were whole weeks of it where I was bored witless, but then there were also experiences that I still draw from and that still help in job interviews!

Also, doing it meant that I wasn't starting 6th year aged 15, so that was reason enough for me!!!

Superbus

It is mandatory in my school, and now, going into 6th Year, I can safely say that TY was the best year of my life. The amount of stuff I got involved in was amazing; some of it interesting, some of it significantly less so, but overall a huge variety, from running a radio station to selling Christmas trees to doing a musical to running a charity (earning over €100,000) - at the end of it I got an award for involvement, so I guess I threw myself into it more than others, and that's kind of the sentiment evident on the thread - you get out what you put in.

Certainly , I found it more worthwhile than 2nd and 5th Year, at least in terms of learning things other than Hamlet's soliloquys and the detail behind town planning in Paris.

7Sins

Superbus wrote: »

It is mandatory in my school, and now, going into 6th Year, I can safely say that TY was the best year of my life. The amount of stuff I got involved in was amazing; some of it interesting, some of it significantly less so, but overall a huge variety, from running a radio station to selling Christmas trees to doing a musical to running a charity (earning over €100,000) - at the end of it I got an award for involvement, so I guess I threw myself into it more than others, and that's kind of the sentiment evident on the thread - you get out what you put in.

Certainly , I found it more worthwhile than 2nd and 5th Year, at least in terms of learning things other than Hamlet's soliloquys and the detail behind town planning in Paris.

You're the type of person that would irritate me in real life.

Superbus

7Sins wrote: »

You're the type of person that would irritate me in real life.

Back at you my good fellow.

7Sins

Superbus wrote: »

Back at you my good fellow.

Detection of humour?

Superbus

7Sins wrote: »

Detection of humour?

Not really. Someone who would make a judgement of character based on an internet post about Transition Year is someone who would irritate me in real life.

Anyway, this isn't going to achieve anything at all, so goodbye.

7Sins

Superbus wrote: »

Not really. Someone who would make a judgement of character based on an internet post about Transition Year is someone who would irritate me in real life.

Anyway, this isn't going to achieve anything at all, so goodbye.

Knew it, you're the type of person that would irritate me in real life, goodbye.

Shane L

How much did yee guys/gals pay for TY the fee for ours was 150 euro but still had to pay for trips etc during the year :rolleyes:

Niles

It was mandatory in my school the year I did it (but not the year after strangely enough), can't say I regret it. Education is not all about exams, what ever people may say. The work experience is a good idea, we also did things like Geography projects which served as a useful "dry run" for those taking the subject to Leaving Cert level. It also allows you to find out where your strengths and weaknesses lie; it's a chance to develop new skills, etc... Corny as it may sound, my one regret is that I didn't do more in it!

St.Spodo

If it's all about maturing and growing as a person, taking a year out between school and third level would probably be of greater benefit. You learn more and learn more about yourself in ''the real world'' as it were, than within the confines of a classroom.

MangoLime

Teamshadowclan wrote: »

See, I know people who did the TY program with me who argued the exact same things. But again, I think that goes down to how much effort you put into the year, since I, doing the same course, found my grades increased following TY.

It strikes me that a good TY program should offer plenty to keep the stduent focused and working, but it's the mindset of the student going in that determines how they come out of it. If you treat it as a doss year, of course you're going to come out the other side with problems...

Just for the record-I went into TY with a very open mind. I was really looking forward to it as I thought I would gain valuable life skills whilst having fun at the same time.

But it was crap

Lord TSC

MangoLime wrote: »

Just for the record-I went into TY with a very open mind. I was really looking forward to it as I thought I would gain valuable life skills whilst having fun at the same time.

But it was crap

Oh, don't get me wrong. I wasn't aiming the post specifically at you. More just a general comment. I have friends who had open minds and would say the same things as you did, but who never really worked in TY and wanted a doss year but then complained cause they never did anything...